Northwestern University football players can unionize, federal agency says
Published March 26, 2014
FoxNews.com

CHICAGO – In a stunning ruling that has the potential to revolutionize college athletics, a federal agency said Wednesday that football players at Northwestern University can create the nation's first college athlete's union.

The decision by a regional director of the National Labor Relations Board means it agrees football players at the Big Ten school qualify as employees under federal law and therefore can legally unionize.

The Evanston, Ill-based university argued college athletes, as students, don't fit in the same category as factory workers, truck drivers and other unionized workers. The school plans to appeal to labor authorities in Washington, D.C.

Outgoing Wildcats quarterback Kain Colter took a leading role in establishing the College Athletes Players Association, or CAPA, which would take the lead in organizing the players. The United Steelworkers union has been footing the legal bills.

Colter, whose eligibility has been exhausted and who has entered the NFL draft, said nearly all of the 85 scholarship players on the Wildcats roster backed the union bid, though only he expressed his support publicly.

CAPA attorneys argued that college football is, for all practical purposes, a commercial enterprise that relies on players' labor to generate billions of dollars in profits. That, they contend, makes the relationship of schools to players one of employers to employees.

In its endeavor to have college football players be recognized as essential workers, CAPA likened scholarships to employment pay -- too little pay from its point of view. Northwestern balked at that claim, describing scholarship as grants.

Giving college athletes employee status and allowing them to unionize, critics have argued, could hurt college sports in numerous ways -- including by raising the prospects of strikes by disgruntled players or lockouts by athletic departments.

The NCAA has been under increasing scrutiny over its amateurism rules and is fighting a class-action federal lawsuit by former players seeking a cut of the billions of dollars earned from live broadcasts, memorabilia sales and video games. Other lawsuits allege the NCAA failed to protect players from debilitating head injuries.

NCAA President Mark Emmert has pushed for a $2,000-per-player stipend to help athletes defray some of expenses. Critics say that isn't nearly enough, considering players help bring in millions of dollars to their schools and conferences.

CAPA's specific goals include guaranteeing coverage of sports-related medical expenses for current and former players, ensuring better procedures to reduce head injuries and potentially letting players pursue commercial sponsorships.

For now, the push is to unionize athletes at private schools, such as Northwestern, because the federal labor agency does not have jurisdiction over public universities.

During the NLRB's five days of hearings in February, Wildcats coach Pat Fitzgerald took the stand for union opponents, and his testimony sometimes was at odds with Colter's.

Colter told the hearing that players' performance on the field was more important to Northwestern than their in-class performance, saying, "You fulfill the football requirement and, if you can, you fit in academics." Asked why Northwestern gave him a scholarship of $75,000 a year, he responded: "To play football. To perform an athletic service."

But Fitzgerald said he tells players academics come first, saying, "We want them to be the best they can be ... to be a champion in life."

An attorney representing the university, Alex Barbour, noted Northwestern has one of the highest graduation rates for college football players in the nation, around 97 percent. Barbour insisted, "Northwestern is not a football factory."

If this happens any player accepting either scholarship or stipend money should be made to sign a binding contract that they must stay in college for the entire period they are legible for college sports. No leaving early for the NFL/NBA etc.

Ok.Fine.
Pay them.
Let them have a union.
If one unversity has to do it, then you bet others will soon see this situation as well.

That is...like some of you said on the other thread, then college athletes can have a choice of being a paid college professional athlete or not. Join the union and get paid if they want . For those who do not, they do not have too. Their choice. For those who do and very few of them would not
so no more free meals, dorm room and board, medical care, and scholarships full or partial. A binding contract would have to be in place in which the athlete would have to work for that university for the full four years. Add they can find their own housing, transportation, etc.
School? Learning? Forget that totally .
From high school to working as a football, basketball, baseball player in college for four years and then after that, who knows! Some willl make it to the pros and many, MANY, MOST of the others will land at very temporary type jobs or worst.

This is really sad.
You have a bunch of lawyers, agents, and others finding a way here to to take advantage of these athletes who simply know no better. Their homes mostly know no better as well.

Ok.Fine.
Pay them.
Let them have a union.If one unversity has to do it, then you bet others will soon see this situation as well.

That is...like some of you said on the other thread, then college athletes can have a choice of being a paid college professional athlete or not. Join the union and get paid if they want . For those who do not, they do not have too. Their choice. For those who do and very few of them would not so no more free meals, dorm room and board, medical care, and scholarships full or partial. A binding contract would have to be in place in which the athlete would have to work for that university for the full four years. Add they can find their own housing, transportation, etc. School? Learning? Forget that totally .
From high school to working as a football, basketball, baseball player in college for four years and then after that, who knows! Some willl make it to the pros and many, MANY, MOST of the others will land at very temporary type jobs or worst.

This is really sad.
You have a bunch of lawyers, agents, and others finding a way here to to take advantage of these athletes who simply know no better. Their homes mostly know no better as well.

You're making a lot of good/logical points in these threads (highlighted a few I want to address) and I know where you're coming from ... in the end, the student/athlete (the person who can least afford it) gets the short end of the stick.

The bigger picture than unionization, to me, is the designation of the college athlete as an "employee". Unionization is just the vehicle being used to bring this about, IMO. Just as in the private sector, college athletes will be able to choose whether they want to be in a union or not ... some will, some won't ... all universities won't be required to participate. What will probably happen though, is all college athletes will be designated as "employees", which will be a catastrophe, IMO.

The athletes couldn't afford the free meals, dorm rooms, transportation, medical care, tuition, et... in the first place, which is why it (and scholarships) will all be defined as income and taxed by the IRS under their new employee designation ... bet, . Somehow I'm thinking the whole "college loan bubble" that is about to burst is part of this ... just haven't thought it through yet.

Lastly, you totally hit the nail on the head with the, "School? Learning? Forget that totally" sentiment ... it's gonna' basically turn the NCAA into another employment sector and if we thought there was a problem with athletes attending college strictly as a gateway to the pros, this will certainly accelerate it and make it even worse, IMO.

I just saw this on Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. I think it is the show for last week.
Check your cable free and view-by-choice station.
The segment of this was really sad. Important . Per NCAA 's rule,
50 % must graduate so many universities are graduating their certain athletes. Fake, athletic clasess that they don't even have to show up for. Bogus, worthless degrees that the athlete cannot use. Good thing because they know nothing of any real profession.

The man in the picture was teaching himself to read in college by using Dr. Seuss.

Things like this should fixed and monitored by those wanting to pay and unionize college athletes . If those calling for players to get paid and have unions really have their intentions in the right place, they would fix this first. These people have found simply a new way for many MORE people to take big advantage of these athletes. Call it what it is.

I just saw this on Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. I think it is the show for last week.
Check your cable free and view-by-choice station.
The segment of this was really sad. Important . Per NCAA 's rule,
50 % must graduate so many universities are graduating their certain athletes. Fake, athletic clasess that they don't even have to show up for. Bogus, worthless degrees that the athlete cannot use. Good thing because they know nothing of any real profession.

The man in the picture was teaching himself to read in college by using Dr. Seuss.

Things like this should fixed and monitored by those wanting to pay and unionize college athletes . If those calling for players to get paid and have unions really have their intentions in the right place, they would fix this first. These people have found simply a new way for many MORE people to take big advantage of these athletes. Call it what it is.

$$$$$$$

Hmmm, interesting ... it's also a coincidence that after posting on this topic yesterday, the head-honcho of the NCAA was on one of the many politico shows that air Sunday mornings, so I watched the segment and he made a few more specific points along the lines of the danger in classifying college athletes as employees.

What does this spell out for the college athletes in the non-revenue producing sports? It's not like colleges/universities are making a killing & banking all the revenues from football/basketball (the two major college sport programs). NCAA football/basketball basically support an institutions overall athletic program and fund programs (such as bowling, volleyball, swimming, women's hockey, et ...) that would not be able to sustain themselves or be provided by an institution were it not for the revenues generated via football/basketball.

You can't designate football players as employees and not the rest, IMO. It will be interesting to see how this plays out & how they jump that hurdle.

But you're 100% right ... it's just another (maybe more politically correct, these days) way of making money off the student athletes. I'm also kinda' thinking it may be an effort to turn the NCAA into an 'official' minor leagues for the NFL vs the NCAA already being a minor league for the NFL in name only, ie now the college guys will get salaries, contracts, et... similar to how the minor leagues in other major sports operate ... thus dissolving the college/universities of the responsibility to actually educate the student athlete and/or the need to hand out scholarships, et..., while still being able to profit from their labor.